


injured a stone, hospitalized a brick

by medievalraven



Category: Good Girls (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Boxing, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Semi-Public Sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-19
Updated: 2020-04-01
Packaged: 2020-05-14 23:39:12
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 18,117
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19283542
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/medievalraven/pseuds/medievalraven
Summary: Seething in the aftermath of a disastrous family dinner that Dean had tricked her into holding, Beth’s eyes catch the words on the tattered piece of paper that has silently mocked her for the last week.  Looking back down at the polo in her hands Beth lets the shirt fall into the foamy water and pulls the yellow gloves from her hands.  Her fingers brush gently across the words of the coffee-stained flyer as her face breaks into a slow smile.  Beth Boland was going to take back control of her life and she was going to start with boxing classes.orA Brio Boxing AU





	1. Chapter 1

The sharp autumn breeze immediately burrows its way under Beth’s skin as she steps out of her car and glances around the small park near her home. Despite the sunshine slowly warming her cheeks the cool air seems to have deterred others from being outdoors except for a family pushing two children on the swings and a father and son kicking a soccer ball back and forth. Sighing quietly to herself Beth reaches for the phone resting in her coat pocket to message Dean. 

Their divorce is still a fresh wound that refuses to heal and the act of untangling twenty years of memories hasn’t been as easy as Beth had hoped. The ties that bind the two of them are too much to overcome some days especially when it seems that once she is able to sever one Dean has attached another two. She is in the middle of sending a quick ‘where are you’ text when a bright orange piece of paper appears just behind the glowing screen of her phone. Clutching her hands against her chest, Beth looks up to meet the eyes of a young woman holding a massive stack of flyers. 

“No registration fees for the entire month of October when you bring this flyer to sign up for classes at Eastside Gym,” the girl chirps with a voice that’s almost as high as her ponytail. Forcing the same smile she typically reserves for other PTA moms on her face, Beth starts to refuse the paper when she catches sight of Dean and her kids approaching from the far side of the park. Confronted with the sudden prospect of giving Dean the chance to meet yet another barely legal mistress, Beth grabs the flyer and moves quickly to put some distance between where she was just standing and her family. 

A flare of tension begins to roll up her neck and Beth prays that she can get through this hand-off unscathed and without Dean trapping her into another family activity. It’s almost as if he can sense that she is trying to regain who she was before him and in his desperation has resorted to using their children to keep her closer than feels comfortable. While Beth has little problem saying no to Dean’s requests she can’t find it in her to fight the sad eyes of her children when they plead for time with both their mother and father.

The fake smile on her face slowly morphs into one of happiness as Emma tackles her at the knees. Letting out a quiet laugh, Beth moves to place the items in her hands into her satchel. The exchange with the overeager gym employee pushed from her consciousness as the pressing concern of dinner and baths slam to the forefront of her mind and she moves quickly to guide the children back to her minivan and away from Dean’s forlorn eyes.

It’s almost two weeks later that the day at the park comes back into Beth’s memory as she pulls out the now crumpled piece of paper from her purse as she’s searching for her favorite tube of lipstick. Smoothing out the creases she breathes out a soft laugh at the image of four overly buff men looking back at her from the page. Her hands move to place the paper with the small pile of other items bound for recycling when the bolded words “are you looking to take control of your life?” catch her eye. 

With her hand hovering above the recycling bin Beth’s gaze shifts out the window above her kitchen sink that overlooks the backyard. Through the panes she can see Dean slowly pushing a lawnmower across the yard, the pattern he creates in the sod looks patchy even from Beth’s vantage point. An uncomfortable feeling begins bubbling up in her stomach that surprises Beth in how aggressive it takes hold and causes her to briefly crinkle the paper still resting in her left hand. It’s only when Jane runs into the kitchen asking about her goo kit that Beth places the flyer on the kitchen island near her baking supplies instead of the bright blue bin. 

The words manage to haunt Beth for days until they become the only thing she can see. Somehow the phrase manifests itself in random conversations and advertisements in her favorite magazines until eventually bold black letters begin to appear to her in dreams that leave her feeling unbalanced for hours upon waking. But it isn’t until Beth is elbow deep in lukewarm soapy water scrubbing at a spaghetti stain on one of Dean’s work polos that something in her breaks. 

Seething in the aftermath of a disastrous family dinner that Dean had tricked her into holding, Beth’s eyes catch the words on the tattered piece of paper that has silently mocked her for the last week. Looking back down at the polo in her hands Beth lets the shirt fall into the foamy water and pulls the yellow gloves from her hands. Her now pruney fingers brush gently across the words of the coffee-stained flyer as her face breaks into a slow smile. Beth Boland was going to take back control of her life and she was going to start with boxing classes. 

\--

It takes almost twenty minutes before Beth feels prepared enough to approach the unassuming brick building from the safety of her car. Grabbing the once vibrant flyer from the seat next to her she moves towards the front door and with one final deep breath pushes them open. The bright fluorescent lights momentarily blind her before the scent of muskiness and cleaning chemicals fills her nostrils. Reorienting herself quickly Beth’s hands shift to secure the strap of her purse before she strides toward the small reception desk and a white-haired woman. 

“Um, hi. I was interested in signing up for your boxing class for women,” Beth says as she slides the tattered flyer across the counter. The older woman slowly turns from where she was folding towels and Beth can just make out the word 'Judy' embroidered into her shirt. 

“You’re a little late for that promotion unfortunately sweetheart,” Judy says with a kind smile as she hands Beth a clipboard with several sheets of paper attached. “But why don’t you start filling out this paperwork and I’ll see what I can do for you?”

Mumbling a quiet thank you Beth moves towards a collection of mismatched chairs situated just to the side of the reception desk and looks out across the gym. The space itself isn’t much different than other gyms Beth has belonged to over the years. Mirrors line one entire wall, another is adorned with racks of various weights and kettle bells, and several punching bags with the word Everlast written on the side hang from an old steel beam towards the back. It’s the large boxing ring dominating the center of the space that holds her gaze though as she clocks a small crowd of people watching two men slowly circle one another. 

At first glance, Beth isn’t sure how it’s an even fight. A large pale man with the tattoo of a skull on his head looms menacingly over his slimmer opponent who must be fifty pounds lighter. A flicker of pity for the smaller man passes through Beth before she moves her attention back to the paperwork resting on her lap. She’s debating whether to list Ruby or Annie as her emergency contact when a loud cheer brings her eyes back to the ring. 

The smaller man has somehow gotten his opponent up against the ropes and is unrelenting in his strikes against the man’s rib cage. Several black bars line the warm brown skin on the back of his arms and his repeated punches blur them into one long streak of ink. Beth can’t help but watch the sinewy muscles of his back as he punches the larger man - the sharp contrast of his angled shoulder blades with the smooth planes of unblemished skin that stretches for miles before disappearing beneath a pair of black gym shorts. Suddenly her hands itch to trace the line of sweat that she imagines is slowly descending from the back of his neck - to feel the power behind his every movement. 

The larger man must finally surrender because the other stops abruptly and takes two steps back before moving to the side of the ring to accept a bottle of water. A breath she didn’t even realize she was holding escapes Beth as she leans back in her chair, her body moving closer to the action without her even realizing it. 

Taking a quick drink from her own water bottle Beth laughs quietly to herself before picking up the clipboard from the ground where it had fallen at some point. Signing her name with an extra flourish she walks back to the reception desk and Judy.

“Can you hold on a sec honey?” Judy asks Beth with a harried smile before turning to wave down someone across the gym. “Hey, Rio? Do you mind coming over here for a minute?”

Beth follows the woman’s movement and sees the man she was just openly watching in the ring now striding towards her wiping his face with a white towel. It’s only when he lowers his hand that she realizes this is the first time she’s seen his face. 

Her eyes greedily take in the hint of a beard framing his strong jawline and cheekbones that she thinks would cut her finger if she were to touch them. But it’s the large eagle tattoo spanning the width of his neck that gives Beth pause and makes her wonder how it would feel beneath her fingertips, beneath her lips. Forcing herself back into the present she takes one step back from the desk as Rio approaches in hopes that even this small distance will extinguish whatever is now blazing inside her. 

“Yo.” 

“I really hate to ask but Tonya just called in to say she’s going to be fifteen minutes late and she needs someone to start the warm-up for her class. I would do it but you know with how my knee’s been acting up lately that I’m not going to be any good to anyone. Do you have some extra time to help us out?” Judy asks in one rambling breath, stress etching its way into the wrinkles on her brow with each word.

Without even a glance in Beth’s direction Rio flashes a quick smile to the poor woman. “I can do fifteen.”

“God you are truly a lifesaver!” she says before looking down at the clipboard Beth had laid on the counter only moments before. “Okay Elizabeth you can go with Rio and he’ll get you set up with the rest of the class. Stop by before you leave and I’ll make sure you get a key and copy of the paperwork. Welcome to Eastside Gym!”

Pivoting slightly away from the counter Rio’s gaze falls on Beth and she watches as he slowly rakes his eyes over her form before exhaling out a quiet laugh. She knows what she must look like to him. Knows he is taking in the sharp contrast of her bright floral tank to the almost cold sterility of the rest of their surroundings, the softness of her features and body compared to his own jagged roughness. Just another Mrs. Cleaver looking to shake up her life in middle age. And there’s what Beth thinks is a flash of pity in his eyes mixed with something else she can’t name before it’s gone and a smirk appears on his face. 

Anger replaces the fervor previously surging through Beth’s veins at the thought of this stranger judging her and dismissing her so quickly. If this was before Beth might have wilted under his stare or turned and marched back to her car with her tail between her legs. Instead, she grasps whatever semblance of confidence she’s gained since that night in her kitchen and gives him what she hopes is her most withering glare before stalking towards the space she assumes is the classroom leaving him behind in her wake.

Laying her purse down against the mirror Beth moves towards the only free punching bag and bends to pick up the pair of gloves resting on the ground. She’s only just fastened the last piece of velcro when Rio appears in the space now wearing a black sleeveless shirt that matches his shorts. 

“Okay ladies, so Tonya’s gonna be a couple minutes. You guys cool startin’ with the bags until she gets here?” Rio asks as his eyes move from person to person. The other women nod and turn to start their workout leaving only Beth facing Rio. She’s trying to work out what he was able to so easily see in that brief moment at the desk to cause that laugh when she notices he hasn’t turned away from her like she expected and instead is raising his right eyebrow at her in some kind of silent challenge.

Cheeks blazing in embarrassment Beth spins around quickly and reaches her hand out to lightly tap the punching bag before glancing to her left to figure out how to position her feet. Taking a deep breath she closes her eyes and starts to give herself a pep talk when she’s startled by a warm sensation on her left hip. 

Blinking her eyes open again Beth meets Rio’s gaze in the mirror and she can see now that he has positioned himself behind her with his left hand resting on her hip bone. Slowly Rio increases the strength of his grip on her hip, the heat of his hand seeping into her skin through the fabric of her leggings. His eyes languidly move across her face in the mirror and Beth struggles to remember the last time anyone touched her like this in any meaningful way. She begins to raise her arm to reach back for him when the sound of a punching bag hitting the wall shatters the moment. 

As if remembering why he had come over in the first place, Rio leans his head down so his mouth is level with Beth’s ear and quietly murmurs, “You need to angle your body. You ain’t gonna do shit with a punch that comes straight on.”

Rotating her hips slowly in his grasp, Beth looks over her shoulder to check whether the new position will be okay only to realize he hasn’t moved his own head back. Warm breath fans out on her left cheek and she swears she can see her flushed face reflected in his blown-out pupils. Sweeping his tongue across his lips quickly Rio pulls back and removes his hand from her hip.

“A’ight, now let’s see what you can do. You ain’t afraid to break a nail right Elizabeth?” he quips before folding his arms across his chest. The movement only serves to draw Beth’s focus to the large tattoo resting on his left shoulder before she fully comprehends his comment.

“I’m tougher than I look,” she replies before her fist strikes the punching bag, “and my name’s Beth.” The bag barely moves, but the action fills her with a sense of accomplishment she hasn’t felt in years. Her eyes meet his again in the mirror and she catches the tail end of an open expression that’s gone before she knows it.

“Okay, okay,” he says before drawing his bottom lip between his perfect white teeth. Nodding to himself quickly Rio begins to lift his right hand to the space between her shoulder blades to change her position again when a voice breaks through the fog.

“Oh my god, I am so sorry guys for being late!” a tall brunette enters Beth’s sight and begins to fasten a pair of gloves. “Rio thank you so much for helping out, you’re the best.”

Rio just shakes his head and turns to leave before pausing. His hand briefly rests on Beth’s shoulder and then he’s gone. But before Beth can even think about following his departure the brunette is standing next to her launching into a detailed explanation of the workout and different intervals. 

And she’s in the middle of her third thirty-second drill when the sound of laughter echoes throughout the gym. Stopping to brush her now sweaty bangs from her forehead, Beth twists her head to locate the source. Her eyes sweep across the room before they land on Rio standing near the reception desk with his arm around a young boy in a little league uniform. The boy is in the middle of telling what appears to be a very involved story to Judy as Rio’s hand lifts to ruffle his jet black hair. 

Turning around to see that Tonya is still facing away from her, Beth allows herself another minute to observe Rio and this child that must be his son. The story ends with a dramatic embellishment as the boy throws his arms in the air earning laughs from both adults and Beth watches as Rio crouches down to say something to the boy before lifting him into his arms and throwing him over his shoulder. The sound of the buzzer combined with Tonya’s voice snaps Beth’s attention back to her corner of the gym. She’s only half listening to the next set of instructions when she chances another look back towards the front desk only to be met with the sight of the door gently swinging shut. 

The next morning Beth will wake up to see light yellow bruises have formed along the ridges of her knuckles. But the pain of them won’t compare to the lingering heat from his touch burned into the skin of her hip and shoulder. 

\--

“I’m sorry, but did you just say boxing classes?” Ruby asks before stopping her cart in the middle of a brightly lit aisle of the Cloud 9 superstore.

The sound of some interchangeable top forty song fills the air as Beth turns to meet the incredulous face of her best friend. “Oh don’t give me that look,” she says as she moves towards the clothing section. “And it’s not boxing as much as it’s boxing-inspired HIIT.”

Beth guides her cart next to a display laden with piles of neon workout clothes. Picking up a pair of bright green capris she wrinkles her nose before laying them back down. “Okay I’ll bite,” Ruby replies handing her a navy tank top, “what’s boxing-inspired HIIT?”

Holding the shirt up against her torso Beth is met with a nod of approval from Ruby. “Think more cardio and less the stuff your dad used to make us watch on Saturday nights,” she answers before placing the top into her cart. 

Her answer immediately brings the image of Rio gliding across the cushioned ring to the forefront of her mind. In the weeks since her first class Beth had found herself seeking Rio out whenever she stepped into the gym - quick glances over her shoulder after she managed to successfully complete a circuit or long looks at the front door during her cool down stretch silently willing his figure to slowly emerge under the fluorescent lights. 

On some level, Beth knew that what she felt was more than just an attraction. While Rio’s initial appeal may have been purely physical, with time she had begun to understand that it was his control and power that kept her gaze continuously searching for his in any room. The way his presence commanded a space in spite of his slim build. The way people seemed to utter his name with reverence. And that’s what Beth wanted - not the whispered adoration but to be seen and respected. 

The image of Rio’s gaze on her face in the smudged mirror after that first punch flashes through her mind. His face reflected back at her with an expression that she hadn’t been able to identify in the moment but has since realized was the mixture of surprise and pride. That Rio had seen what she was capable of and it had impressed him. And god, she thinks, when was the last time anyone had looked at her and been impressed? The last time someone had seen her potential without connecting it to their own selfish desires? 

“I don’t know why you couldn’t just sign up for a yoga class or something,” Ruby mumbles breaking Beth from her thoughts. Ruby’s fingers glide over the hangers of various lightweight jackets before pausing on a floral pattern, “Is this about Dean? Has he been pushing you to get back together again? Just say the word and I can have Stan show him why he’s one of Detroit's finest.”

“It’s not that really,” Beth sighs softly as her fingers reach out to gently pluck at the seam of a pair of bike shorts. “You just have no idea what it’s like to watch yourself become a background detail in your own life. To see the colors around you fade a little more each day until all you have left is a mess of grays and blacks. To have the children you’ve spent years caring for decide they prefer the company of yellow minions to you. To have the man you once loved decide your feelings and wishes aren’t as important as his own.” Tears prick behind her eyes and she feels the slide of wet mascara on her cheekbones before continuing, “For whatever reason I’m actually good at this and it feels good to be good at something. I finally feel like I’m becoming that person I always wanted to be when we were young. I finally feel like I have power in my life and I don’t want to lose that.” 

A soft sniffle makes Beth turn around. “You owe me a damn slushee for making me cry in the middle of this store,” Ruby says as she searches for a tissue in her purse. Beth gives her a quick smile and leans her chest across the clothing racks to brush away the tear slowly falling down her friend’s cheek. 

“As many as you want.”

Taking a deep breath in to recenter herself Ruby quickly comments, “Alright then - boxing lessons. You know I bet the view is much more enjoyable at a boxing gym than a yoga studio anyway.” 

“Maybe if you’re into a bunch of overly tan men with neck veins the size of my arms,” Beth jokes unable to stop a grin from appearing on her face at the expression Ruby makes in response. “You know you’re always welcome to join me if you want. It really is a great workout.” 

“Babe if I didn’t have to deal with a pile of medical bills from Sara’s surgery I would be there,” Ruby says with a sad smile as they begin to head towards the registers. “But I do know someone who would never pass up the opportunity to punch someone if you need the company.”

\--

The long black hand ticks closer and closer towards the top of what once must have been a polished clock above the reception desk as Beth tries to temper her growing disappointment. She should have known better than to expect that Annie would actually show up on time. Breathing out a soft sigh of resignation, she starts toward the stretch of benches lining the back wall closest to the class space and begins to search for the hair tie that has somehow disappeared into the depths of her new black gym bag. After what feels like a small eternity her fingers finally land on the elasticated fabric and in the process of pulling her hand back a small roll of hand tape flies out of the bag. Beth watches as the tape arcs through the air as if in slow motion before it lands with a quiet thump on the ground and rolls to a stop against the toe of a black tennis shoe. Dragging her eyes up from the tape she’s met with the bemused face of Rio who is watching her with one eyebrow raised. 

Beth immediately feels the blood rush to the skin of her cheeks and silently prays that her face has somehow not turned the same color as her red hair. Leaning forward she reaches her arm out to pick up the tape only to be met with the feeling of warm skin beneath her fingertips instead. Her hand lingers on Rio’s before she remembers herself and jumps back. 

“You plannin’ on moving in?” Rio asks nodding his head towards the now spilled contents of the duffel bag resting next to Beth. 

Huffing out a short laugh, Beth shakes her head as her hands move frantically to push the fallen items back into her bag. She groans softly to herself as she sees a lone tampon sitting next to her foot, “I can’t be prepared?”

A smirk begins to grow on Rio’s face as he tosses the tape from hand to hand, “Mama there’s prepared and then there’s whatever this is.”

And of course, he would choose this moment to re-enter her life. It had been weeks since she last saw him at the gym and Beth had only just convinced herself that the feelings she couldn’t seem to shake were due to her own loneliness. Too many quiet nights in her bed alone and too many years going without the experience of a warm and affectionate male gaze. It was only natural that she mistake what was probably a friendly gesture as something more intimate. But now she only feels annoyance at the warm feeling that has started to spread in her chest despite his prolonged absence. 

“Do you think I could have that back please?” she asks reaching her hand out to take the tape back from Rio. “Some of us have a class to get ready for and I don’t want to be late for warm-up.”

Rio lets out a low whistle. “Is that so, huh? Well I would hate for you to be late.” He reaches behind him and moves a chair in front of Beth before sitting down. “Let’s make sure you’re ready then.”

It takes Beth a minute to catch up to what’s happening and once she does Rio is already holding her left hand while he rips a piece of tape from the spool with his teeth. She is lost in the thought of those teeth on other more intimate places when she realizes that Rio has asked her a question. “I’m sorry - what?” Beth sputters out as she attempts to focus on what he is saying and not the feeling of his rough hands against her own smooth ones.

Rio shakes his head quickly before repeating, “I was askin’ if you had been enjoyin’ the class so far.”

“It’s not what I expected, but I’m enjoying it,” Beth responds. “I could do without all the men walking around flexing their muscles though,” she adds in a voice that’s more breathless than she intended before tilting her head at Rio’s arms peeking out from a navy sleeveless shirt that is almost a perfect match to her own tank top.

“Huh.” Beth could swear that she sees the ghost of a smile on his lips and that feeling in her chest grows a little heavier. But then he falls quiet and focuses on tearing off another piece of tape. 

“Was that your son that came in before?” Beth asks softly before she can stop herself. She wishes she could blame the question on the intoxicating mixture of his sweat and cologne cutting off the oxygen supply to her brain - but the image of him with that small boy heaved over his shoulder laughing loudly had burrowed its way deep inside her and in such close proximity to him she can’t find the willpower to stop herself from asking the question that has plagued her thoughts for weeks.

And for a brief moment Beth thinks he isn’t going to answer her, that she’s crossed a line that she didn’t know existed within him. She can see the tension slowly move its way up his arms as his hands pause briefly in wrapping her left hand. But as quickly as it comes it leaves. “Yeah,” he says on an exhale, “that was Pop.”

“Pop?”

A small smile flashes across his face that Beth finds herself mirroring. Rio moves to take her right hand and the coarseness of his hand momentarily drags her eyes from his face. “Marcus actually. Told him we would meet at 7 and he ain’t the best at waitin’ an extra five minutes.”

“A trait I’m sure he inherited from his father,” Beth teases. “I’m sure he dreams of being just like you when he grows up,” she adds remembering the grin that had lit up the boy’s face when he fell into his father’s arms.

His hands pull the tape a little more tightly on his next loop and Beth can’t stop the gasp that comes out. He flicks his eyes up quickly to gauge her reaction before continuing slowly. “The sins of the father are bound to repeat in the son right?” and he speaks so softly Beth isn’t sure he meant for her to hear it at all. Clearing his throat he adds, “Most of his dreams revolve around playing baseball right now.”

And even though he hadn’t brushed off her comment Beth can see that the door into Rio’s world is slowly closing before her. “Kenny, my oldest, is convinced he’s going to be the next Michael Phelps,” she says in an effort to release some of the tension that has resurfaced in Rio.

“He any good?”

“We like to keep him busy so he doesn’t get to spend as much time in the water as he wants. But, yes, he’s not bad,” Beth says fondly thinking of the hours she has spent sitting in the chlorine heavy air watching Kenny swim laps.

“We?” It’s said with an air of nonchalance, but Beth can see the way Rio’s eyes shift briefly to look at the ring finger on her left hand.

“My ex-husband and I,” she says trying to meet Rio’s eyes. He’s almost done wrapping her hand and Beth doesn’t want the connection to end with this man that has been front and center in her mind since the moment she met him. “It started with swim then came scouts then debate club. And that’s just Kenny. Each of the others has at least two activities too.” Beth let’s out a deep breath she didn’t realize she was holding. “I love seeing them busy and so happy, but some days I feel like I’m nothing more than a glorified chauffeur and homework checker. That I only exist to cook and take care of others.”

“Nah, you’re more interesting than that,” he says gently as he shifts his torso forward slightly keeping her now fully wrapped hand firmly in his grasp. Beth’s eyes track the movement, watching as the muscles in his shoulder adjust to accommodate their new position. And for a moment she thinks he is going to bridge the space between them and press his lips to her flushed skin. She can almost feel the soft flutter of his long eyelashes on her cheeks when a sudden pain in her left arm jolts her back to the present.

“Not to interrupt this little moment or anything, but class is about to start and I didn’t pay $25 to not punch my sister so…” Annie says as she bends down to pick up the boxing glove now resting by Beth’s left foot. 

Rio breathes out a soft laugh and rubs his thumb quickly over Beth’s knuckles before slowly loosening his grip on her hand and leaning back in his seat. The space between them that just a moment ago felt microscopic now feels too vast for Beth to traverse. Glancing quickly over his shoulder, Rio stands and slowly refocuses his gaze on Beth’s face before tilting his chin at her hands. “Make sure to watch yourself when you cut those off, yeah Elizabeth?” The words only just out of his mouth before he turns on his heel and jogs back over to the two men Beth saw him speaking with when she came in only ten minutes earlier. 

“Was that really necessary?” Beth hisses at Annie as she roughly pulls the glove from her grip.

Sighing loudly Annie turns to face Beth and starts securing a pair of boxing shields to her hands. “God knows you deserve it and all Elizabeth,” Annie begins before raising her eyebrows on the final word. “But I had to work an extra shift to have enough money to go to this class with you. That was four extra hours of quality bonding time with Boomer and pushing club card sign-ups, so yeah I did. Please focus on cleaning the twigs out of your lady cave on your own time and let me take out years of pent up sisterly aggression now.”

Beth finds herself barking out a deep laugh as Annie begins to jump from one foot to the other while slapping the shields together. “Okay, okay,” she says picking up her duffel bag and moving towards the partitioned class space.

“But if you wanted to jump him in the locker room on our way out I won’t stop you. God, I’ll even find the condom for you,” Annie jokes as she pushes her elbow into Beth’s side.

“You are a child,” Beth says gently reprimanding her. “And honestly he probably only came over because he felt sorry for me sitting alone on that bench. A problem I only had because you were running late.”

“And all I’m saying is,” Annie whispers as the instructor moved towards the front of the space, “if a man who had a face like that and arms that jacked looked at me half as intensely as he just did to you I wouldn’t be wearing pants for much longer.” 

Rolling her eyes Beth begins to formulate the words in her head to dispel the notion that Rio would be interested in someone like her. It was pity that brought him over to her in the first place, right? Why else would he go out of his way to help her? Turning her head to look over at where Rio was now standing Beth’s gaze traces the lines of his back before pausing on his hands. Shaking her head she turns back towards Annie and hopes the smile on her face doesn’t come across quite as fake as it feels.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks so much for reading! This is my first attempt at writing anything creatively so I'm honestly just in disbelief that this story exists right now! Hopefully I'll get chapter two posted next week!
> 
> Thanks so much to fortunehasgivenup for the original idea, alloeqat for the pre-read, and McCall (civillove) for just being so helpful and supportive during this process - OTP Us forever babe.


	2. Chapter 2

The mirrors won’t stop fogging over. A thick heat steadily enveloping the entire gym, the kind that settles deep in the bones and makes everything feel soft around the edges. 

Letting out a labored breath, Beth cringes at how her tank top is clinging to the sweat along the small of her back. Just five more minutes, she could handle five more minutes.

It’s quiet tonight in the gym, a sort of peace falling over the space. Rumor of the first bad Michigan snow keeping most of the faces she’s come to recognize at home.

Well all except for one.

Her hand reaches out to drag through the layer of moisture on the mirror. Pressing her fingers back against the nape of her neck, her eyes slowly focus on the reflected planes of Rio’s back as he strikes a punching bag.

She should have known that he would be here despite the storm brewing outside. He may still be a mystery in so many ways, but the man rarely deviated from his schedule. Or strayed too far from her.

It’s too easy to let herself get lost in him, tracking the subtle bounce in his step as he bobs and weaves, the tense and release of his muscles with each punch. And even in the dim light of the gym, she can just make out the hard line of his hip bones peeking out from his maroon shorts.

Shaking her head lightly Beth turns to wait for Tonya’s next instruction only to realize that somehow she’s now alone in the classroom space, the other women disappearing in the time she was watching Rio. 

The heat must really be getting to her she thinks idly before taking off her gloves. She’s about to zip up her duffel bag when the flash of something in the mirror catches her attention. 

Rio’s moved to stand behind her, the film of moisture softening the harsh lines of the eagle taking flight on his neck. His reflected eyes staring so intently at her that she swears she’ll feel it on her skin for days.

“Looks like it’s just the two of us darlin’.” The deep rumble of his voice flaming the fire building in her low stomach.

A loud howl of wind rattles the old building, the harsh sound of steel groaning making Beth shudder. 

“What’s wrong, you can’t handle a little storm?” He’s so close to her now, she’s not even sure when he’d moved. One second he’s leaning against the punching bag, the next she can practically feel his breath on her neck.

“I’m not afraid of thunder.” 

“Is that so?” Rio smirks, his hand reaching out to turn her towards him.

If she thought it was warm before the roughness of his touch makes it almost unbearable. The heat of him seeping into her blood and making her feel light-headed. 

Tilting her head back lazily, Beth meets his gaze again. She understands now how people say they can get lost in someone’s eyes. The warmth of Rio’s brown eyes pulling her in deeper and deeper until they’re all she sees, all she wants to see.

Her fingers find that silver chain he always wears. The pendant’s chipped on the edges and she’s trying to figure out what exactly is on it when his voice breaks through the haze. 

“What do you want Elizabeth?”

A flash of lightning fills the space, the storm helping to emphasize Rio’s question. 

It should be easy. What she wants is her kids to be happy and healthy or Annie to not have to worry about Sadie being bullied at school or Stan and Ruby to have one day where they don’t have to worry about Sara’s medical bills. 

It should be easy, but it’s not. 

Not when she’s looking into Rio’s eyes and noticing the specks of gold hidden in the brown. Not when his hand’s slipped under her shirt to rest on her waist. 

Without breaking eye contact Beth reaches out to dip her fingers into the waist of Rio’s maroon shorts and pull him forward. The dampness of the mirror finally breaking the heat when his hips press her into the glass.

And she can feel his wet exhale against her neck as he presses himself closer when suddenly he’s gone, replaced by a flash of white light and a loud banging noise.

Blinking her eyes open, Beth lets out a disappointed groan at the sight of her bedroom ceiling. The lingering memory of Rio’s body against her slowly fading into haunting loneliness as she takes in her surroundings. 

From behind the gauzy curtains, she can just make out black clouds sweeping across the sky to block the early morning sun, the shadows slowly plunging the room into grey-tinged darkness.

She’s just shrugged into her favorite silk robe when the creak of footsteps echo in the hallway. And even though she knows it makes no logical sense, she wants to believe that Rio will walk through her bedroom door to continue what they started in the dream, what they started all those weeks ago now.

Instead, she hears the muffled voice of the man that can’t seem to let her go. 

“Hey, Beth? Where do we keep the frying pan? I wanted to make the kids some eggs before school.” 

“I can do it,” she sighs, wincing when her feet land on the cold wood floor. “Just give me a second to freshen up.”

“You’re the best Bethy,” Dean says, relief lacing each word, before heading back to the kitchen.

Walking to the en suite, she turns the shower dial to the hottest setting and welcomes the wet heat that slowly blankets her body. 

\--

Beth never thought she would actually look forward to going to the gym. But that was before the unexpected rain forced all four kids inside for the day and forced her to play referee when a game of Mario Kart got a little too heated all while trying to bake and decorate four dozen cupcakes for a last minute class pageant. And now she really needed a drink or to punch something. 

It didn’t help that her interrupted dream had left her feeling off balance all day, her body so close to release only to have it taken away at the last second.

Grabbing an umbrella from her closet she’s trying to remember where she left her sneakers when she hears the sounds of a football game blaring from the lounge. It seems like the universe has one more punch to throw of its own today. 

“Dean, you’re early,” Beth says, stopping to rest her hand on the hall banister.

“Oh hey, yeah I got Kevin to close tonight so I could come over and catch the end of the game before I took the kids,” Dean replies, pointing his beer bottle at the TV. “Can you believe that my new place doesn’t have ESPN?”

“Did you tell the kids that you’re here?” The sounds of soft giggles and Mario from upstairs should be enough of an answer, but she can’t stop herself from asking him anyway.

“Not yet,” Dean mumbles, eyes focused on the TV. Taking a long drink of his beer he adds, “So I was thinking and how great would it be if we were to have like a weekly family night?”

The question stops Beth in her tracks halfway to the kitchen. “Family night?”

“Well yeah with all six of us. It could be just like old times with board games or movies or whatever,” he says with a shrug. “I just think it’s important that we show the kids that we’re a united front you know?”

“We don’t need to play board games together to show that we’re a united front Dean,” she sighs.

“No? Well, you know what Kenny asked me last week? When his mom and dad were getting back together. God, you should have seen his little face.”

“I see their little faces every single day which is more than you can say,” she corrects. 

“And all I’m saying is there’s been a lot of changes lately Bethy and I’m just trying to take care of my family.”

Beth can’t stop the sarcastic laugh that comes out. “Just trying to take care of your family? How exactly have you been trying to take care of your family Dean? Was it when you had affair after affair while I took care of our children? Or was it when you almost lost the car dealership you inherited from your dad?”

“Beth…”

A metal water bottle slamming down on the countertop cuts Dean off mid-excuse.

“No, don’t. Everything you’ve done the last ten years has been for Dean, not this family.”

For a second she thinks he actually looks embarrassed, all his sins laid out in front of him on their Pottery Barn coffee table. But then he opens his mouth and she knows she was wrong. 

“You know what I was thinking about the other day? Do you remember that night before our wedding when you were up until midnight trying to finish those stupid place cards? I had snuck back to the apartment to see you because the idea of being apart for even one night was too much and I found you in tears over how to spell my aunt’s new boyfriend’s name. And we just sat out on the back porch and ate jordan almonds until Ruby kicked me out.” 

Moving to stand next to her at the island, he places his sweaty hand on top of hers. “That was the night I knew I couldn’t live without you in my life and I still feel that way now. What do you say Bethy? Let’s leave the past in the past and start over, be a family again.”

And it’s amazing what time can do to a memory. Because for Beth that night had been so different. She had never felt as alone in the world as she did in front of those off-white place cards. The names of relatives and friends she had never met looking back at her and making her feel like an imposter to marry into this big, happy family when all she’d known was Ruby and Annie. Dean’s attempts to cheer her up only succeeding in making her less sure of herself while he somehow ate half of the favors.

“You know what I remember?” she starts, sliding her hand roughly from under his. “I remember starving myself for weeks before our wedding because you said I had to wear your mother’s dress. I remember coming home from a school run to see men taking furniture from my home because we were behind on our three mortgages. I remember crying myself to sleep for weeks because the idea of telling my children that their father had cancer made me physically ill.”

Stepping away from the kitchen, Beth picks up the mostly empty beer bottle from the coffee table and tosses it into the trash.

“I will never be able to forgive you for what you’ve put me through these last ten years. You may not be able to live without me, but I can damn well live without you.”

She can see the exact moment the words register with Dean, his dull eyes widening in disbelief. 

“Now that’s not fair, I never…”

“Dean it’s over, we’re over. You need to accept that and move on without me,” Beth says, cutting him off short. “Now this is my home, not yours so I would appreciate it if you left your key on the counter before you leave.”

And for the first time since she’s known him, Dean’s rendered speechless, his mouth opening and closing as he struggles to think of anything to say that could change her mind. 

Turning away from his rapidly darkening face, Beth yells up the stairs, “Okay guys your dad’s here, get your stuff and come down please.” 

The rush of small bodies into the lounge saving her from whatever argument Dean had been building in his head. 

Out of the corner of her eye she watches as he fumbles with his keys for a moment before one drops to the counter. Then he’s gone with the kids, the front door slamming behind them.

She’s not naive enough to think this means that she won’t have to deal with him in the future, the four children they share practically guarantees that. But she was at least able to cut through most of the strings connecting them tonight and that was a start.

\--

The rain is just starting to slow down when she pulls up to the gym thirty minutes later, a stream of thick droplets instead of the afternoon’s downpour. Cutting the engine Beth can’t quite shake the feeling steadily growing in her gut even as she takes in the inviting glow from the front windows. 

She’d only felt this way a few times before, an unyielding heaviness that warned her to turn around now unless she wanted to get hurt. Her body protecting her against some unknown pain it just knew was lurking around the corner. 

It had been there when she found out her father had packed up and left her to take care of a bedridden mother and young sister. It was there when she walked in on Dean and Amber at the dealership in what was an extremely friendly business meeting. And it was here now sitting in the gym parking lot.

Maybe she should go for a drink instead and avoid whatever it was that was waiting for her. 

“Do you know you’ve been sitting in your car for like ten minutes?” Annie jokes, appearing in the now open passenger door. “Whoa, are you feeling okay? Because you look like you’re about to barf and if that’s the case I want to be out of firing range.” 

Beth lets out an uneasy laugh. “I’m fine. I was just thinking about what I needed to do around the house this weekend with the kids gone.” The lie coming out before she can stop it. 

“God, you can worry about that later. We have way more important things to worry about. Like how I’m going to convince Tonya to show me that neck grip thing, you know the one that makes grown men cry?” Annie says, her hand reaching up to touch Beth’s neck.

“Could you take this a little more seriously?” Beth asks.

“I am! But Boomer’s been a real dick lately and there’s only so much damage I can do with my words,” Annie replies, moving to get out of the car. “Are you planning on coming in or not?”

She can feel a hard lurch in her gut, a warning. It would be easy to leave now and not look back, she could be at a bar in less than ten minutes. But then Annie’s reaching across the car and grabbing her keys and Beth knows she’s stuck. 

It must be lingering feelings from her conversation with Dean she thinks as they walk into the gym. Her body just forgot to warn her earlier so it’s making up for it now. 

They’ve barely stepped past the reception desk when her eyes find Rio. He’s standing against the far wall with a few guys leaning against a punching bag, the slight twitch in his lips letting her know that he saw her moment of indecision in the car.

It had been weeks since he helped her wrap her knuckles for class, their almost kiss leaving her on edge for days. They hadn’t had the chance to talk like that again, something or someone always managing to pull one of them away before they could get past simple pleasantries. 

And it wouldn’t have bothered Beth as much if Rio hadn’t taken the exchange as permission to touch her whenever he saw fit, his hand finding her hip when he passed or his fingertips on her face as he pushed her bangs off her forehead. Each touch leaving her with more questions than answers. 

She’s not sure how much longer she can deal with this overpowering feeling of longing. How much longer she can take this silent cat-and-mouse game they seem to be playing especially after her dream that morning. 

“Seriously though, is everything okay? You seem off or something.” Annie’s voice finally breaking Beth’s gaze from Rio.

“Nothing I can’t handle,” Beth teases, her shoulder bumping lightly against Annie’s.

The waves of tension starting to ebb as soon as she finishes tightening the velcro on her gloves. Her fears from earlier quickly disappearing with each punch and strike until all that’s left is the sound of the bag slamming against the wall.

Looking back on it she’s surprised she didn’t see it coming, the adrenaline in her veins somehow overshadowing the pain in her gut. 

It all happened so quickly. The feeling of a hand on her shoulder breaking Beth from her cardio-induced trance so abruptly she can’t stop her fist from flying backward, her brain catching up to the momentum of her body too late. 

“Shit, Beth!” Annie shrieks.

She doesn’t even need to see Annie’s panicked eyes to know exactly who’s standing behind her. There’s only one person who would touch her that way, who would be that close.

Taking a deep breath to steady herself, Beth slowly turns to face Rio. He’s standing with one hand cradling his jaw, thumb slowly rubbing the hard jut of his chin. The memory of that calloused thumb rubbing her knuckles flashing through her mind before she registers the rest of his face. 

It’s not exactly anger, but there’s a deep intensity in his features that makes her want to run and hide. The chocolate brown eyes she’d gotten lost in during her dream replaced with something darker, something more predatory.

And while she didn’t know what her body was warning her about earlier, she did now. Rio’s expression making it clear that this connection between them was ruined and now he was done with her. 

His hard exhale finally breaks the deafening silence that had settled over the room and then he’s right in front of her, so close that the tips of their shoes touch. All at once the air feels too thick, the moment too loaded.

“Rio, I…” Beth starts, an apology on the tip of her tongue when Tonya suddenly appears next to her.

“Oh my god! Rio are you okay?”

“Okay forget that neck grip thing, can you show me that punch?” Annie jokes, tugging Beth across the room. “Seriously when did you get so cool?”

They’re far enough away now that Beth can’t hear any of Tonya and Rio’s conversation. All she can do is watch as Tonya places her hand on Rio’s forearm before he shakes his head at whatever question she must have asked him. 

His eyes catch hers briefly, not quite as hard now but still too dark to make her feel comfortable about the entire situation. Then he’s gone, headed back to the weight racks and his friends without another look in her direction.

The rest of the class passes in a slow crawl, especially after Beth sees one of Rio’s friends mimic the hit and the glare that he gives in response. She definitely should have gone for that drink, she never should have come here tonight. 

“You know I knew these boxing classes would be worth it,” Annie laughs. “Do you want to come back and have dinner with me and Sadie? I can wow you with my take-out ordering skills and I swear I’ll only mention the punch like five times max.”

Zipping up her duffel bag Beth lets out a long sigh. “Honestly I think I just want to go home and pretend this day didn’t happen.”

“Hey, you know you didn’t do anything wrong right? Everyone knows that it wasn’t really your fault,” Annie says in a gentle voice that’s typically reserved for Sadie. 

And she wants to believe Annie, that at the end of the day this is all something she can brush under the rug and never worry about again. That it can become just another fun anecdote that’s brought out at dinner parties for easy laughs. 

But the memory of Rio’s clenched jaw and dark eyes make it hard to believe that this won’t haunt her for days if not weeks, the thoughts of what could have been lingering.

“Alright, well I’ll see you tomorrow night then? First drink’s on me slugger,” Annie jokes, tossing an exaggerated punch to Beth’s arm before sprinting out to her car.

The rain that had been so unceasing finally seems to have stopped as if the weather itself was taking pity on what had happened. Tucking her umbrella back into her bag, she notices Rio over her shoulder heading towards the back locker rooms alone. 

She never did get a chance to apologize for earlier, Annie pulling her away before she could try to explain what had happened. This wasn’t like when her father left or when Dean decided to cheat on her, she could still salvage whatever this thing was with Rio. 

All she had to do was take a chance. 

\--

The sound of water hitting the tile floor echoes loudly in the small room. Letting the door close behind her softly, a relieved sigh escapes Beth as she takes in the empty space. 

Only now that she’s actually in the locker room she doesn’t really know what to do. It had seemed like such a reasonable plan outside. All she had to do was find Rio, apologize, and hope whatever tenuous connection they’d formed hadn’t been ruined forever. 

Instead, Rio’s in the shower and she’s just standing in the middle of a men’s locker room.

‘Maybe this wasn’t the best plan after all,’ Beth thinks absently, looking around the space.

The sight of the fogged over mirrors sends a shiver down her spine, flashes of her interrupted dream clouding her vision. ‘Definitely not a good plan,’ she amends at the loud squeak of a shower handle. 

“If you came to finish the job sweetheart, you got me at a bit of a disadvantage,” Rio drawls as he walks around the corner.

A blush warms up Beth’s cheeks as she takes in his form. Her eyes lingering over the defined ridges of his abdomen and the raised skin of old scars visible just above the white towel tied around his waist.

And even though she’s seen him shirtless countless times now it does little to quell the feeling of longing building in her low stomach and something different, softer in her chest. 

The desire to touch him, to tug on that lower lip with her teeth, battling against the desire to find out what lies hidden underneath the layers of hard muscle and overpowering confidence. The need to know what drives him and makes him let down his guard almost overwhelming Beth in how fiercely it burrows into her heart.

“So you just like hanging out in men’s locker rooms or did you want to talk to me ‘bout something?”

There’s no bite in his words, but they still do little to settle her nerves. 

“I just wanted to apologize for earlier. It honestly all happened so fast and I didn’t mean to hit you.”

Rio’s eyes drift up and down the length of her before he rests his hip against the bank of lockers. “I mean you surprised the hell out of me with that punch darlin’, but we’re good. Now if you had actually put your weight behind it we might be havin’ a different conversation.” 

It’s as if a massive weight is lifted off her shoulders at his words. She might not know a lot about Rio, but she does know he isn’t one to just say what someone wants to hear, his blunt honesty sometimes too much to handle. The knowledge that she hadn’t completely destroyed whatever this was between them bringing a small smile to her face. 

“Well I really just wanted to check and make sure you were fine,” Beth says, unsure how much longer she could stay in the locker room before it crossed the line from polite to unwelcome.

She’s almost to the door when his voice has her turning back to face him.

“You get your head straight?”

“Did I get my head straight?” Beth repeats haltingly. 

Rolling his eyes Rio reaches for a stick of deodorant in his locker. “Something musta been bothering you to take it out on that bag the way you were.” 

That must have been what brought him over to her in the first place. He could probably tell there was something bothering her from just a quick glance in her direction.

“Oh, no, I just had to deal with some things at home earlier with the kids and I guess I let it get to me.”

While Annie hadn’t been able to catch her lie earlier, she can tell that it doesn’t fool Rio now. She’s not sure how he’s always able to read her so easily. How he’s always able to see through the walls she’s built around herself. 

“Yeah? Well you let me know if you need help taking care of any problems in the future.”

It’s the softness in his eyes as he replies that finally does her in. And after spending the last hour worried she had ruined whatever this thing was between them Beth can’t find the willpower to deprive herself of this connection any longer. 

“You should know that I’m tougher than I look,” she teases, stepping closer so that they’re nearly touching.

His palm immediately finds her hip and gives it a firm squeeze. “I don’t doubt that ma. I got a bruise on my chin that says you shouldn’t be fucked with.”

He’s not wrong, she can see the ghost of a light brown bruise through his stubble, barely noticeable unless someone knew to look for it. 

“If only all my problems could be solved with a good punch,” Beth jokes, her fingers lifting to graze the bruise before falling to trace the left wing of his eagle tattoo.

She can feel Rio’s pulse speed up under her thumb, a silent tell he can’t control. “Yeah, but it don’t hurt.”

“Maybe I just need more practice,” the quip coming out a little more breathless than she intended.

His eyes drop to her lips briefly before he lets out a soft exhale. Reaching out to tuck a piece of hair behind her ear he murmurs, “I could always teach you.”

The distance between them seems to have shrunk without Beth realizing it. This close she can see a few beads of water clinging to his long eyelashes as he watches her. 

This wasn’t part of any plan she could have come up with. There are really only two ways for this to go she realizes and as domineering as Rio is in the ring he seems perfectly content to give Beth control over what will happen next. 

All she needs to do is make a choice.

Without taking her eyes off his, she slowly lifts her hand to cup the bruise on Rio’s jaw before pushing up on her toes to brush her lips along the feathers inked on his neck. A low rumbling groan settles in his chest, then it’s really too easy to pull him down into a kiss. 

And it’s softer, gentler than she had imagined it would be when she laid awake at night alone in her too big bed. While his touch is firm, the hand in her hair not shy in pulling her closer, he seems to melt into her as if he was savoring every movement, every moment. 

Pulling back to nip at his lower lip, Beth drops her hand to play with the knot in Rio’s towel. It had been years since she’d last done this and even with Rio pressed against her now she can’t stop the nerves clouding her mind. 

He must sense her hesitance, his hand letting go of her hair to slide his knuckles so lightly across her cheek Beth’s not sure she didn’t imagine it. Her fingers tighten on the rough fabric around his waist and then any fears she had are gone, replaced with a kiss that is decidedly not soft or gentle.

And he’s just pressed his palm hard against her core when a voice breaks through the pleasure.

“Hey boss? Big Mike just called to say there’s an issue with the next shipment, what did you...oh.” 

Leaning back Beth sees the bemused face of a heavily tattooed man over Rio’s shoulder. She can only assume what it looks like to him, Rio clad in just a towel that’s hiding nothing and her standing so close to him with smeared lipstick. But he just stands there watching them not saying anything and really that’s so much worse than any smart comment he could have made.

Rio finally lets out a deep sigh, his hand coming up to pinch the bridge of his nose. “A’ight, I’ll handle it in a sec.”

He turns to dig through his locker for something and just like that the spell connecting the two of them is broken. Their moment’s gone and Beth can recognize when she’s being brushed off, her marriage with Dean teaching her something after all.

“Well I really did just want to apologize again for earlier,” the weight of both men’s attention on her making the words come out rushed. “Don’t let me keep you if you have work to do, I’m sure I’ll see you around the gym.”

Faintly Beth can hear Rio say her name as she pushes past the other man to leave, but she doesn’t stop until she’s out of the gym and sitting in her car. 

'That was definitely not the plan,’ she thinks, resting her forehead on the cold steering wheel.

\--

“God it was just like that scene from The Shining, imagine blood everywhere,” Annie says, arms gesturing wildly as Ruby’s gaze darts to Beth. 

“It was not that bad Annie,” Beth interjects with a sigh. “He barely even reacted.”

A wicked smile blossoms across Annie’s face. “Oh, I think boxing friend reacted alright and I’m just glad I didn’t have to witness whatever mating ritual was about to go down before Tonya showed up.”

“Can you please stop calling him boxing friend?”

Setting her glass of white wine back on the bar top Ruby asks, “Okay, what’s his name then?”

“Rio!” The word out of Beth’s mouth before she can temper the excitement in her tone. Clearing her throat quickly she repeats, “His name is Rio.”

And she really hasn’t had enough to drink tonight to deal with the twin mischievous faces now staring at her. 

“Did you hear that? His name is Rio,” Annie says turning to face Ruby before mouthing the words dong fog. “Well, Rio came pretty close to KO’ing Beth’s panties yesterday if you catch my drift.”

“Don’t say the word panties,” Beth argues weakly, the words lost to Annie and Ruby’s loud cackles. 

This girls’ night had seemed like a great idea when they planned it two weeks ago. But now in light of yesterday’s boxing class and locker room moment? Maybe she should have just stayed at home with Real Housewives and a box of Cheez-its.

Shaking the melting ice in her glass, Beth turns to look for their waitress. If she has to watch Annie reenact that stupid punch for a third time tonight she might as well be buzzed. 

Her eyes take in the selection of liquor bottles lining the shelves trying to see if they have that one whiskey she likes when the flash of a neon martini glass flickering in the front window draws her attention. 

She notices the lines of the jacket-clad back first, the haze of the neon light casting a faint green shadow on the black denim hunched over the bar. It seems oddly familiar to Beth, she knows she’s seen it before somewhere but her head can’t quite place where or how and from this angle she can’t make out a face. 

Shaking her head she starts to look for their waitress again when the person leans back slightly and suddenly she knows exactly where she’s seen it before and how it felt under her hands in that steamy locker room. 

“Shit…” Beth mutters as she spins back around in her seat. She definitely hasn’t had enough to drink to deal with a tipsy Annie and Rio in the same room. 

Even after their kiss everything still feels so delicate between them, Rio’s resigned voice calling out after her echoing in Beth’s mind for the rest of the night. She’d come so close to losing him, to losing them, and she doesn’t want one bad joke from Annie to be what finally ends everything. 

“You okay there, B?” Ruby asks, turning to look at the bar briefly.

“I’m good, it’s just getting a little crowded here though. Do you guys want to go get something to eat?” It’s a cheap trick, Annie’s love of disgustingly fried foods after a few shots just too easy to use as a convenient escape plan.

“Oh, let’s go to that food truck on Fourth Street!” Annie says, pulling a couple crumpled bills from her pocket to throw on the table.

“You mean the place that got shut down by the health department last week for roaches? Sounds delicious.” Ruby comments.

Shouldering her purse, Beth looks around the bar to take in her options. There has to be a back entrance to this place, a kitchen or side door that leads to an alley and away from Rio. And she’s just spotted what looks like a way out when she hears Annie’s melodramatic gasp.

“Oh my god, boxing friend’s here?”

“Damn Beth, that’s boxing friend?” Ruby drawls with wide eyes. “I should have signed up for boxing classes a long time ago.”

“You don’t think he’s here to like settle the score right?” Annie asks her horrified expression making Beth laugh softly. 

Glancing back towards the bar she meets Rio’s hooded eyes, the heat behind them making her thighs clench. There was definitely a score that needed settled just not what Annie expected (or maybe exactly what Annie expected). 

“You know you got a little something on your neck Annie. Why don’t you go clean yourself up in the bathroom?” Ruby suggests in a tone that implies how little of a real suggestion it actually is. 

“Fine, but you two better not talk about anything good while I’m gone,” Annie groans, pointing two fingers at her eyes then Beth’s.

Ruby drags her finger along the rim of her now empty wine glass, muffled music from the bar speakers filling the silence.

“You know I thought you were out of your damn mind when you signed up for those boxing classes. Let’s be real babe, you’re not exactly the punching and kicking type. Well maybe you are after what happened yesterday,” Ruby says, laughing softly to herself. “Now I don’t know what happened at that gym, but you’ve changed. You’re happier now and you deserve it.” 

And Ruby’s right, of course she’s right, things were different now. It wasn’t all because of the classes, but that had been the tipping point hadn’t it? 

Without them would she have let Dean strongarm her into those family nights or whatever other stupid idea he was bound to come up with? Would she have ever met Rio? 

“Oh and B?” Ruby adds with a teasing smile. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you look at anyone the way you were looking at Mr. Tall, Brooding, and Handsome over there.”

“Hate you.”

“Hate your face,” Ruby replies lazily as Annie returns to the table. “Okay change of plans. Your sister here is going to go order herself another drink and I am going to take you to that disgusting food truck.”

Leaning back in her seat Annie gives Beth a long appraising look. “Alright, but only if you let me get extra guac.”

Beth watches as they slowly push through the crowd, Annie briefly veering off towards Rio before Ruby pulls her back and out the door and then she’s alone, well maybe not that alone. 

Somehow there’s an open seat next to him at the bar, an unspoken invitation to join him for a drink and what would definitely be a slightly awkward conversation. And it’s an enticing offer truly, but it’s not nearly enough for her, not after everything that happened yesterday. 

Her legs feel unsteady when she finally stands, the bourbon and memory of Rio’s hand in her hair making her knees weak. A smile tugging at her cheeks when she clocks how his hips shift back and forth on the bar stool.

Turning away from Rio, Beth moves quickly, purposely to the back alcove of the bar. The heat of his eyes tracking her heavy on her back as she opens the door to an unlocked bathroom. 

The hum of the fluorescent bulb is deafening in the small space, a dull buzzing she can feel burrow under her skin. Leaning back against the thin door, Beth winces at the framed taxi poster digging into her back. 

He had to know what she was offering, didn’t he? What she wanted to continue from yesterday. But he hadn’t followed her then, would he now? 

Stepping deeper into the room, Beth takes in the peeling yellow wallpaper and chipped countertop, the faint smell of off-brand disinfectant burning her lungs when she takes a deep breath. It was no gym locker room, but she guesses it will have to do when Rio appears in the doorway.

Their eyes meet in the faded mirror, his long body against the door making her wonder if that poster is digging into his back too, if he even notices.

Turning to face him Beth tries to match his casual stance, tries to seem as unaffected by his presence as he seems to be by hers.

Absently she realizes that this is probably the most clothed she’s ever seen him. She’d become so used to seeing miles of smooth skin that the sight of him with his hands tucked in the pockets of a fitted jacket and dark wash jeans seems almost unnatural. 

And for a long time all they do is look at each other, his gaze steadfast on her blue eyes, hers on the pout of his lower lip. Neither willing to be the first to yield to the thick tension that’s followed them from their first meeting, that’s only gotten worse after the locker room. 

Beth’s just beginning to wonder how long they could stay like this when she notices his eyes flicker down towards her chest. And suddenly she knows exactly how to break through his guard. 

Leaning back against the countertop she slowly lifts her hand to slip the top three buttons of her dress loose. From under her eyelashes, she can see the subtle clench of his jaw, the adjustment he makes in his stance as he takes in the pale skin encased in blue lace. The dusty rose of her nipples visible through the bra as they stand to attention. 

His eyes look almost black in the dim light and Beth thinks she’s finally won this cat-and-mouse game they’ve been playing when that mask he wears so well is back and he slouches further against the door.

‘Right then,’ she thinks, lifting her hands to gather the hem of her dress. 

The fabric drags too easily up her thighs and it had been years since the pale skin had seen the light of day or the heat of a male gaze. 

Not that Rio’s looking anyway, his gaze staying stubbornly on her face. And the longer his eyes stay on hers the more frustrated Beth gets that she somehow misread this situation, the more embarrassed she feels at standing half-naked in front of this man in a dirty, bar bathroom. 

Rio’s low hum breaks Beth from her worries. He’s finally let himself take her in, his eyes lingering on the lace covering her center. 

She can’t stop the breathless sigh that comes out, the weight of his gaze resting heavy on her chest. Rio’s eyes slowly drift back to her face at the sound. There’s a gentleness in his expression that surprises Beth, a flicker of disbelief hidden behind heat and desire. Maybe she misread this situation after all.

But none of that matters now, not when his hand’s sliding out of his pocket to lock the door behind him. Not when he’s suddenly bridging the distance between them and dragging her into a rough kiss.

And it’s nothing like those hesitant touches they shared in the locker room. Rio’s hands seem intent to commit every inch of Beth’s body to memory. His touch the right side of rough as he palms her breast beneath the lace, as his tongue presses against her lips.

Her hands have only just pushed the jacket from his frame when Rio abruptly breaks the kiss. The whine that leaves Beth should embarrass her, but in the moment all she can focus on are his arms now visible in a black t-shirt and the need to have his mouth back on hers. 

Leaning back he brushes his fingers lightly down her chest, over her trembling stomach to her lace covered heat. Nudging the damp fabric aside he makes quick work of pushing one, then two fingers deep inside her. 

She’s not going to last long at this pace, his fingers so much thicker and rougher than she’s used to. Her vision just starting to glaze over when she feels a sharp sting against her hip and the sound of lace tearing fills the room. 

He’s kneeling between her legs before she can realize what’s happening, panties hanging loosely from one ankle. Then it’s only the heat of his mouth as he devours her. His thick stubble on her sensitive skin pushing her closer and closer to her peak. 

It’s all too good or he’s too good or it’s been too long because all too quickly she can feel that tell-tale shaking in her thighs. Her hands reach out to grab his hair then his arms when she can’t get a grip, her fingers quickly finding those thick bar tattoos and pulling him in deeper. 

She’s so close all it really takes is a couple well-placed touches and it’s over, her orgasm crashing over her in a burst of bright light.

He’s pressing kisses up her body when she finally comes down, the touch shockingly gentle after how hard he had just been holding her open. 

Beth’s fingers trace the hem of his shirt for a moment before tugging his lower half closer to her. The sensation of his denim covered cock pressing against her still overly sensitive core forcing out a sharp gasp. 

Rio’s watching her with an eyebrow quirked slightly, his hips gently rocking back and forth in the cradle of her hips. Letting out a choked laugh she answers his unspoken question by pulling him into a messy kiss, the taste of her thick on his tongue. 

But it’s not nearly enough. And Rio must agree because he’s suddenly hauling her off the countertop and pressing her against the wall instead, her legs needing little encouragement to wrap around his hips.

With his full weight pressing against her, Beth can feel exactly how much Rio is straining against the front of his jeans, how hard he got from just eating her out. The thought that this man could be just as undone by her as she is with him making Beth clench her thighs and pull him in even tighter if that was even possible.

Breaking the kiss she slides her lips to trace the feathers along the left wing of his tattoo. The deep rumble of his groan making her drop her hands to release him from his pants.

Beth only just manages to push his briefs down far enough before he’s surging forward into her. In this position she can’t get any leverage to push back against him, not with how tightly his body is clinging onto hers. All she can do is give in to the rhythm of his thrusts and let herself be taken.

And it’s easy to just surrender to him. She’s never felt so full, so consumed by someone else. Her entire world reduced to just the thick scent of his earthy cologne when she buries her face in his neck. The roll of his hips against hers and the bruises she can feel forming with each rough push. The sound of his deep breaths mixed with her soft gasps. The roughness of his fingers swirling around her throbbing clit. The orgasm exploding from deep inside her that pulls him under with her on a ragged exhale.

Dimly she feels his hips continuing to lazily thrust against her in an attempt to prolong the sensations before he rests his forehead against her shoulder to catch his breath.

Releasing her grip on his shirt she lightly strokes his bearded cheek, her thumb rests on the faint bruise that no one else would even know was there. 

She’s waiting for a sense of dread to wash over her, to replace the lingering feelings of a now sated desire. The voice that says nothing will change once they leave this room. The cat-and-mouse game they’ve been playing finished forever now that they’ve slept together.

But all that comes is a dull ache in her center and a soreness in her hips once she’s back standing on two feet. She just knows she’s going to be covered in small oval bruises tomorrow from how tightly he held her.

A smile blooms across her face as she watches Rio tug his jacket back on before lacing his fingers with hers. That smirk she’s grown to love so much quirking up at her briefly as he bends down to pick up her torn panties from the ground. 

Pushing them into his pocket, he brushes his lips against her knuckles and murmurs, “What do you think darlin’, want to go another round?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the slight delay! Life got a little busy, but I hope the wait was worth it! I still can’t believe that this story exists – hopefully I’ll be back with more, but you are always welcome to find me on tumblr in the meantime talking Brio (medievalraven.tumblr.com)
> 
> In retrospect I really missed a great title opportunity in "Four Cockblocks and a Bathroom Break" - but you live and you learn lol.
> 
> Thanks again to fortunehasgivenup for giving me the idea for this fic and McCall (civillove) for just being an amazingly supportive friend during this entire process!


	3. Chapter 3

“Alright, great job ladies!  Thirty more seconds - you can do it, keep pushing!”

Beth groans, huffing out a stuttered breath before pivoting to strike the punching bag in front of her again.  

Thirty seconds, she could do thirty seconds.  

Probably.

“That’s it!  You’re almost there!” Tonya chirps, winking at Beth as she walks past to turn down the music.  “Just a few more seconds...and time! Good work everyone!”

“Fucking finally,” someone mumbles, making Beth laugh as she reaches out to stop her punching bag from swinging back and hitting her.  Now that she’s stopped moving, she can feel that familiar pinprick of soreness begin to blossom through her body, an ache that makes her simultaneously proud of what she’d accomplished and regret ever deciding to sign up for a cardio class in the first place.

“Okay, let’s go through our cool-down stretches and then I’ll see everyone next week!”

Tonya leads them through a few easy stretches and as soon as she finishes the rest of the women file out of the room quickly, leaving Beth alone in the small corner of the gym where they held classes, nursing a now lukewarm bottle of water while she packed up her stuff.

She makes her way slowly into the locker room, chatting with another woman from the class for a couple minutes before taking a short shower.  It was Dean’s night with the kids which meant that she didn’t need to worry about rushing home, that she could take her time drying her hair and putting on lotion without feeling guilty that she was missing something. 

Putting the cap back on the new moisturizer that Ruby had bought her, Beth tosses the tube back in her gym bag and reaches up to fix a couple pieces of hair that had fallen out of her ponytail in the mirror hanging inside her locker.

It surprises her still, these moments where she feels at peace with her life, happy even. 

How after all this time that seemingly ever-present blanket of unease covering everything had been pulled back, letting her feel like she could finally breathe now, finally be herself without the shadow of expectation darkening her path forward. 

Smiling at her reflection, Beth shoulders her bag and heads back out to the main gym floor only to stop just outside the locker room when she sees Rio standing next to the boxing ring. 

It’d been weeks since she’d last seen him.

After their shared moment in that bar bathroom they’d gone back to her house and spent the rest of the night in her bed, where Beth had discovered that Rio’s hands weren’t always as unyielding as they were in the ring, that maybe she had some power over this man after all when she pressed her lips over the wings of his tattoo and then even lower. 

She’d woken up the next morning to find his arm draped low over her hip and his mouth pressed against her neck, his touch so gentle she thought she’d dreamt it until his hand reached up to drag down the panties she’d pulled on in the middle of the night. 

He’d left her hours later with the promise of a first date at some place he knew and Beth had spent the rest of the day feeling the ghost of his touch along her body, pressing her fingertips to the now pink skin along her collarbone where his mouth had lingered, the roughness of his beard leaving her feeling raw in more ways than one. 

But then...well then life got in the way. 

Somehow each of her kids managed to catch a nasty stomach bug that had forced Beth to cancel their date in favor of playing nurse for weeks as it cycled through the house.  Then when it had seemed like things were  _ finally _ quieting down Rio’s ex had an unexpected work emergency out of town, leaving him with Marcus until everything settled down.

And while they’d been able to keep in touch with texts and some late night phone calls (always with her door closed, always ending with Rio murmuring all the things he wanted to do to her while Beth slide her hand into her panties), they hadn’t actually seen each other for almost a month.

Until tonight. 

He hasn’t noticed her yet, too focused on wrapping his knuckles and talking with his friend who she thinks is called Demon, and before she can second guess herself Beth presses herself back towards the locker room again, hidden away enough that she can watch Rio without him realizing he has an audience. 

There’s a grace to his movements when he finally climbs into the ring, a softness underneath all of his strength. She’d heard people describe boxing as a kind of dance before, but it isn’t until she sees Rio effortlessly glide back and forth dodging Demon’s strikes that it makes sense.  

She stays tucked away in the corner for a few more minutes, watching Rio until his loud laugh, almost boyish sounding, makes her slowly pad across the floor towards the ring.

Demon sees her first, lifting his chin in acknowledgment when she rests her forearms against the lowest rope, but Rio stays turned away from her, unaware of her arrival as he adjusts the velcro strap on one of his gloves. 

Beth lets her gym bag slide off her shoulder and drop to the floor before leaning against the rope again, her eyes following the dark lines of the thick bar tattoos on Rio’s arms, the way his muscles tense and release with every hit. 

“Hey now,” Beth says after a minute, voice breathy even to her own ears.  “Fancy seeing you here.”

Rio laughs, shaking his head slightly.  He throws one more punch, hard enough it makes Demon grunt, before he finally turns to see Beth smiling up at him. 

“Thought that was your mama van parked out front, darlin’.”

“And you weren’t going to say hi?” Beth asks, raising her eyebrows when Rio shrugs. 

“Knew you’d show up eventually.”

Beth rolls her eyes, reaching up to grab the highest rope and pull herself up to stand on the frame of the ring.  

“Is that right?” 

“So what do you say, ma?  Wanna help me with a couple moves?” Rio asks, walking over to stand next to her.

Shaking her head, Beth moves her hand to rest on top of Rio’s glove before leaning in closer to him. 

“Looks like you already have help, champ.”

“Yeah, he’s all yours Elizabeth,” Demon says, dropping his shields and climbing out the ring. “Good luck.”

Beth watches as Demon wanders away to pick up a couple dumbbells from a rack and starts flexing in one of the mirrors, barely hiding her laugh in a cough before turning back towards Rio.

“Alright, so what do you want me to do?” Beth asks, ducking under the rope and brushing past Rio to pick up the shields Demon left behind, securing them over her palms. 

“Just gotta hold those steady,” Rio murmurs, bringing a gloved hand up to knock against Beth’s chin. “Don’t want to hit anything we can’t replace, yeah?”

It takes them a couple minutes to find their groove because while Beth has done this before in class with Annie, Annie’s punch isn’t quite as strong or solid as Rio’s, but then it’s easy for Beth to fall into the push and pull of Rio’s jabs, to lose herself to the intensity blanketing his face as he strikes the shields, remembering how he looked that night in the bar when he’d - 

“A’ight, your turn,” Rio says, breaking Beth’s thoughts as he grabs his bottle of water and takes a long drink.

Beth laughs, dropping her arms to rest the shields against her legs and watch the way the feathers of Rio’s tattoo shift as he drinks. “I already had my workout for the night.”

And really she doesn’t think she could punch a hole through a piece of paper now anyway. Not when the ache in her arms and shoulders feels so much sharper after absorbing the shock of Rio’s punches for the last ten minutes.

“You scared you’ll hit me again?” Rio jokes, undoing his own gloves before reaching over to pull the shields off Beth’s hands and drop them to the mat. 

“Rio…” Beth starts, mind already supplying the memory of the last time they were in this gym together, how the edge of his jaw had felt under her knuckles.

Meeting her eyes, Rio smiles softly as his hands, warmer than normal thanks to the gloves, run up and down her forearms, massaging the tightness from her muscles.

“C’mon, you got what it takes or not?”

Beth sighs.  

Because even though she doesn’t know Rio that well yet, is still trying to break down that thick wall he keeps around himself, she knows that he’s not going to accept any of her excuses and that the only way he’s going to let her out of here involves her suiting up again.

Walking over to the side of the ring, Beth crouches to dig her gloves out from where they were buried in her gym bag, turning to see Rio’s gaze quickly flit back to her face from where’d he’d been looking at her ass. 

“Really?” Beth asks, narrowing her eyes at him. 

“C’mere,” Rio says, pulling the gloves from Beth’s hands when she gets close enough and helping her put them on, taking an extra second to check they weren’t too tight against her wrists before picking up the shields again.  “Show me what you got.”

Taking a deep breath, Beth adjusts her stance slightly, ignoring the grin growing on Rio’s face when she reaches out to tap one of the shields before taking another step forward. 

Her first punch lands off center, clipping the side of the shield.  And no matter how she adjusts, her next couple don’t fare much better. 

“Okay, hold up a second,” Rio comments. “Don’t move.”

He tosses the shields to the ground, knocking over his bottle of water, and winks at Beth before moving to stand behind her. 

“Remember what I told you before?  You never want to hit something straight on.”

Rio lifts his hands to settle on Beth’s hips, rotating her slowly until she’s standing at an angle facing his previous position.  

“That’s better.” 

But then instead of moving back to where he’d been standing, Rio takes another step closer to Beth, close enough that she could feel the drag of his shirt against hers.

His hands squeeze her hips tighter, pulling her back to rest against him before he slips a couple fingers under the waistband of her pants and starts rubbing small circles, the cool metal of his rings against her overheated skin making Beth shiver and press her hips back into his.

And she’s only a few seconds away from tearing off her gloves and returning the favor when Rio leans forward enough to nip at her ear before suddenly pulling away and walking over to where he’d dropped the shields. 

“A’ight try again.”

“Asshole,” Beth mumbles, letting out a deep breath and scowling at Rio who’s doing little to hide his amusement at her reaction, especially when he clocks the flush growing along Beth’s neck and chest. 

“There a problem, Elizabeth?” Rio asks, voice almost cloyingly sweet as he tilts his head at her, eyes impossibly wide.

“Nope,” Beth replies, striking the shield hard enough that it briefly knocks Rio off balance and makes him take a couple steps to regain his composure, glaring at Beth when he finally does.

“There a problem, Rio?” Beth mimics, fluttering her eyelashes. 

“Oh, you got jokes, huh?” Rio drawls, rolling his shoulders as he settles back in front of Beth, lifting his chin when he’s in position for her to go again.

They go back and forth like that for a few minutes with Rio stopping her once or twice to change the kind of punch she was throwing before finally he stops her altogether.  

“Think that’s enough for one night.  Don’t want you gettin’ too sore, do we?” Rio teases, tossing the shields to the side before reaching over to undo Beth’s gloves for her, kissing her knuckles lightly.  

Beth laughs, taking the gloves from Rio to put back in her gym bag.  “Definitely, don’t want that.”

“Your form’s gettin’ better too,” Rio says, walking over to where Beth’s standing and resting his hands on the rope on either side of her, caging her in.  “Must have a good teacher.”

“He’s alright I guess,” Beth shrugs, lifting her hand to run her fingertips through Rio’s beard.  

“Is that right?” 

“Yeah,” Beth manages before Rio ducks down and kisses her.  

It’s softer than she expected, really nothing more than just a brush of his lips against hers for a few long seconds, until suddenly he presses closer and his kiss grows firmer, making Beth lose her breath.

Reaching out, Beth grabs Rio’s hips and pulls him tighter against her, whimpering softly when she feels how hard he is already, how much he wants her.

Rio breaks the kiss slowly, dragging his lips away from hers to press against her jaw instead.  

“You all alone in that house of yours tonight?”

Beth nods, curling herself even closer to Rio before turning her head to pull him into another kiss.

Rio groans, a rumbling sound that Beth immediately catalogs away to remember the next time she’s alone, then with one last bite to her bottom lip he pulls away, smiling when Beth finally opens her eyes to meet his.  

“How ‘bout I go grab my stuff,” Rio starts, reaching up to tuck a loose piece of hair behind Beth’s ear, “and we get out of here?”

It’s only when Rio backs away and walks across the ring to pick up the shields and his water bottle that Beth remembers where they are, where they’ve been this entire time.

Clearing her throat, Beth looks around the gym quickly, willing away the blush she can feel heating up her cheeks.  Luckily, there doesn’t seem to be that many people around and she breathes out a sigh of relief until she sees Demon across the floor.  

He’s talking with Rio near the weights, but his eyes are on her, watching as she climbs out of the ring until something Rio says pulls his attention away from her finally.

And really she can’t figure out why Demon would be looking at her like that, like she was a problem he needed to take of.  God she doesn’t think they’ve ever even talked to each other before today.  

Shaking her head, Beth slides her cell phone out of her pocket and starts to respond to a text from Ruby asking if she wanted to come over for a late night drink, thankful for a distraction from whatever was going on with Demon and Rio.  

She’s just typed out a quick apology and is trying to decide what emoji to add when a shadow covers her screen and hands.

“Hey.”

Beth sighs, tapping the purple heart emoji and hitting send before looking up to see Demon leaning against the ropes next to her.

“Sorry for interrupting your workout earlier,” Beth says, dropping her phone into her bag.  

Demon laughs, surprising Beth in how free it sounds, before lifting his hand to run through his long beard.  “No worries. Knew once he realized you were here that I was runnin’ on borrowed time.”  

“Yeah?” Beth replies, smiling when Demon rolls his eyes at her.  

And it isn’t like she didn’t know that Rio liked her, he hadn’t exactly been subtle about that in the weeks since they started whatever this thing is between them.  But there’s still a small part of her that can’t help feeling validated by what Demon’s sharing with her, like this isn’t some kind of dream that she’s going to eventually wake up from, that this is her life.

“Look,” Demon starts, looking over his shoulder before taking a step towards Beth, “I gotta be honest with you.  I’m not sure what’s going on with you and Rio, but you should be careful with him.”

Beth freezes, dread working its way up her spine at Demon’s words, his warning.

“Excuse me?”

“You heard what I said,” Demon replies, crossing his arms over his chest and god, Beth thinks as she takes in the swirling patterns on his skin, is there an inch of this man that isn’t covered in ink?

“I’m not sure what you’re trying to imply,” Beth says, narrowing her eyes at Demon, “but I can take care of myself.”

Because she can.  

She’d been doing it for years, ever since Annie was a little girl and it became clear that whatever was wrong with their mother wasn’t going to get better overnight like she’d hoped.  

And even though everything with Rio is still so fresh, like an unmarked path in the forest of her life, Beth knows that she can handle it.  Even whatever it was that he did for work, a topic he always avoided in conversations and something Beth was sure wasn’t entirely legal.

“Shit, you think I haven’t seen your right hook?  Trust me, I know you can take care of yourself. All I’m saying is if you’re just lookin’ for some fun after your divorce, maybe find another guy.  I’d hate to see my boy all twisted up over some chick with an ink kink who never cared about him to begin with.”

“I’m sorry, what?” Beth asks.  An ink kink?

“You hard of hearing or something?” Demon comments, shaking his head.

Beth bristles and, mirroring Demon’s stance, crosses her arms over her chest.  

“I appreciate your concern, really, and not that it’s any of your business, but you don’t need to worry.”

“Yeah, we’ll see about that,” Demon drawls, reaching out to mock-punch Beth’s shoulder before turning to head back to the free weights.

Dimly Beth can hear her phone vibrate with Ruby’s response in her bag, but she can’t look away from where Demon’s now picking up different dumbbells to find the weight he wants.  

Did Rio think this was just some kind of fling for her?  That she was just looking to get over Dean by fucking him?  Did he tell Demon that?

And it’s quick then, the way Beth’s heart clenches at the idea that Rio thought she was just using him, that he meant nothing to her as if she hadn’t spent every day since their first kiss waiting for his calls, excited for any opportunity to learn more about him.  

Picking up her bag, Beth glances around the gym again, making sure no one’s paying attention to her, and walks over to the men’s locker room, slipping inside before she can second guess herself.

The room’s empty, quiet except for a soft rustling on the other side of the locker bank that Beth hopes is Rio.  

She walks around the row of lockers slowly, smiling when she rounds the corner to see Rio texting on his cell, his bag and hoodie laying on the wooden bench behind him.  

“You lost, Elizabeth?”

Beth hums, moving to stand next to Rio and lean against his open locker, watching his fingers move across the screen as he types out a message.  

“I wanted to talk to you about something.  I wanted - ”

“Yeah?” Rio teases, turning to slide his phone into the pocket of his bag before reaching over and pulling Beth closer, nuzzling her neck.  “You know, we got some unfinished business in here.”

“Do we?” Beth breathes, keening when Rio bites the spot where her neck and shoulder meet.

And she knows she came back here for a reason, that this doesn’t help to prove that she’s not with him for just sex, but then Rio’s kissing her and spinning her around so she’s pressed against the lockers.

Then the only thing she’s thinking about is Rio’s mouth and the heat that’s growing in her low stomach.

“Remember now, mami?” Rio murmurs, pulling back to nip at Beth’s bottom lip.  “Or maybe you need more help?”

Rio kisses her again then drops to his knees, reaching up to tuck his hands into the waistband of her workout pants and slowly drag them down her legs, tossing them behind him.

He wastes no time pulling her underwear to the side and running his fingers through the wetness collecting there, swiping against her clit.  

Beth groans, rocking her hips forward to try and get some pressure, anything from him instead of these light touches, but Rio just moves with her before dropping his hand to rest on her thigh.

“Rio,” Beth gasps, dragging her nails through the short buzz of his hair and smiling when she feels him shudder in response.

The hand on her thigh squeezes her, tight enough that Beth knows, hopes, that there will be bruises when she wakes up in the morning, some kind of reminder that he was here.  But the thought disappears as soon as Rio lifts her leg to rest over his shoulder, holding her open for his fingers and his - 

_ Oh. _

Closing her eyes, Beth bites back a moan and loses herself to the way Rio’s mouth feels on her, grinding down on his face when he starts to suck on her clit, teasing her with the tip of one of his impossibly thick fingers in her cunt.

She can just feel the first sign of her release heating up her veins when a noise in the room breaks through her haze and the lockers behind her shake from the force of someone tugging open a door.

Beth scrambles to pull Rio away from her, whimpering when she sees how wet his mouth and chin are when he finally does lean back.

Rio opens his mouth, ready to ask what’s wrong she’s sure, when whoever else’s in here tosses something into their locker and a loud clang echoes around them, making Rio shake his head. 

Sighing as quietly as she can, Beth starts to move her leg off Rio’s shoulder, hoping that whoever’s on the other side of the lockers doesn’t walk around the corner before she can get her pants back on, only to pause when Rio steels his arm, keeping her in place.

Beth narrows her eyes at Rio, lifting her chin to gesture over her shoulder while she reaches down to grab his wrist and break his hold, but his grip is too firm.

Then he’s smiling up at her, dragging this thumb up the inside of her thigh until it brushes against the edge of her underwear and sneaks under to stroke her skin.

Rio hums, moving his thumb to briefly swipe against her clit before pulling it out again and looking up at her, quirking his eyebrow in question.

And she can still hear that person rifling through their locker, quietly grumbling to himself about something, can still hear the other people outside if she listens hard enough, but then she looks back down at Rio, chin wet with her, and remembers how long it’s been since the last time, how much she’s wanted him and she knows her answer. 

Curling her leg, Beth pulls Rio forward slightly, nodding when he pulls her panties to the side and slides a finger inside her. 

It’s harder than she thought to keep quiet, to bite back her moans especially since Rio seems to have taken it as a personal challenge to make her crack.  

He immediately slides another finger into her, finding the spot she’d never known existed before him so easily she wonders how this is only the third time they’ve done this, his mouth relentless against her clit.

And maybe it’s the danger or the way she can feel Rio’s soft groans against her skin as his lips worship at the altar of her, but suddenly Beth is right back on the edge she’d been so close to before, biting down on her palm to stop herself from crying out when she comes.

Her thighs are still trembling when she finally pushes Rio away, shuddering when he pulls his fingers out.  

Rio smiles, carefully lowering her leg off his shoulder before leaning forward to press his lips to the tattoo on her hip and standing.

“You good?” he whispers, drawing her into a soft kiss.

Beth nods, tracing the inked feathers on Rio’s neck with her fingernail, ready to pull him into another kiss when she feels something bounce off her shoulder.

Looking down, Beth freezes when she sees a small black wrapper resting on the ground between her and Rio.

“Have a good night boss… Elizabeth.”

Rio laughs.  “See you in the mornin’, yeah?”

Demon grunts in response, making sure to slam the door behind him as he leaves the locker room. 

“Just couldn’t keep quiet huh?”

“This isn’t funny, Rio,” Beth hisses, cheeks burning because of course it had to be Demon who walked in on them.  “You work together!”

“He’s heard worse, don’t worry,” Rio says, picking up the condom and chuckling.

Beth bristles, trying to not think about what else Demon has heard as she adjusts her panties, looking around for where Rio had tossed her pants.   

“Well that’s just lovely.”

“Hey,” Rio murmurs, grabbing Beth’s arm and pulling her into his arms, kissing her chin before leaning back to meet her eyes.  “Sure, you’re okay?”

“Demon said…” she starts, pausing when Rio tightens his hold on her.  “You know that this isn’t just sex for me right? That I want something more with you.”

“Is that right?” Rio asks, glancing away from Beth.

And for a second Beth thinks that maybe she said the wrong thing, that maybe Rio didn’t feel the same way or maybe Demon had set her up, but then Rio leans down and kisses her, pushing her back against the tiled wall.

“We can still have sex though, yeah?”

Beth nods, gasping when she feels how hard Rio is against her hip.

“Definitely,” Beth keens, pushing down Rio’s sweatpants and wrapping her hand around his cock, jerking him off slowly.

“That’s good,” Rio groans and the sound makes Beth grip him harder, move her hand a little faster so she can hear it again.  

She works him for another minute, bringing him to the edge only to soften her touch at the last second, savoring the way he clings to her until Rio snaps and bats her hand away. 

Pulling the condom out of his pocket he rolls it down his length before grabbing Beth and lifting her up against the wall, nodding when she reaches down to line him up with her.

He presses in quickly, drawing Beth into a deep kiss as he starts to fuck into her properly, grinding against her clit with each thrust.

“Wait,” Beth moans, clenching around Rio when he changes the angle, “what if someone comes in again?”

“You didn’t have a problem with that earlier,” Rio pants, burying his face in her neck and sucking hard.

“Well I - oh god,” Beth groans, digging her nails into Rio’s arms when he picks up his pace, his hips practically slamming into her and with her back against the wall she has no choice but to just take it.  “Just hurry.”

Rio laughs, pushing Beth’s leg over his shoulder again.  “Whatever you say, darlin’.”  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So - this fic was technically finished but then Manny started posting boxing videos on Instagram and here we are. Honestly I regret nothing. 
> 
> Thank you to everyone for reading, giving kudos, and comments! I appreciate you all so much - especially since this was the first thing I ever wrote and it holds a special place in my heart.
> 
> And a MASSIVE thank you to fortunehasgivenup who not only beta'ed this chapter for me but was an incredible friend while I wrote this and listened when I was being dramatic about that sex scene.
> 
> Boxing Rio would also like to say thank you to his number one fan - the lovely civillove <3 
> 
> Come say hi or yell with me about brio on tumblr at medievalraven.tumblr.com!


End file.
